Para 4.63 of the Foreign Trade Policy 2023 is amended with immediate effect to remove the reference to exemption from Compensation Cess on imports under Diamond Imprest Authorisation. The amendment reflects discontinuation of Compensation Cess from 1 February 2026. Imports under Diamond Imprest Authorisation continue to be exempt from Basic Customs Duty, additional customs duties, Education Cess, anti-dumping duty, countervailing duty, safeguard duties where applicable, and the whole of Integrated Tax levied under the Customs Tariff Act.

TRQ allocation for raw sugar imports is available online to millers and refiners with functional in-house refining capacity, subject to capacity evidence, scrutiny and preference for import completion by the prescribed date. Quota holders must provide Letters of Credit or confirmed contracts, use or timely surrender allocations, and process imported raw sugar at their own facilities. Each specified quantity of raw sugar must yield refined sugar for domestic sale within the stipulated period; non-compliance may trigger customs duty, interest, cancellation or future allocation restrictions. Existing Advance Authorisation holders under SION E52 may elect one-time conversion to TRQ for eligible imported raw sugar, subject to payment of exempted GST, prescribed documentation and domestic-sale reporting.

Export obligation extensions approved by the PRC/EPCG Committee for Advance Authorisation and EPCG Authorisation will be processed automatically through the DGFT system. Exporters need not submit a separate extension application to the Regional Authority after committee approval. The system will issue a fee-payment letter on the committee file; once the prescribed fee is paid through the portal and the response is submitted, it will create and approve the extension file and generate the extension letter. The revised export obligation expiry date will update the relevant authorisation records and be transmitted to ICEGATE, reducing manual processing and verification.

APM Terminals India Pvt. Ltd. is appointed under Section 45(1) of the Customs Act, 1962 as custodian of imported goods landed at Kamarajar Port and received at its container freight station, until clearance for home consumption, warehousing or transhipment. It is also appointed custodian of export cargo brought into its premises until export from that port. The custodian must comply with Section 45, the Handling of Cargo in Customs Areas Regulations, 2009, and applicable rules, regulations and instructions. The appointment takes effect from 3 August 2026.

International transhipment of FCL and LCL cargo is permitted from all seaports and international airports, including movement through other Customs stations, subject to the Customs Act and applicable rules. Liquid bulk, break bulk and solid/dry bulk cargo diverted to Indian ports may be temporarily unloaded, stored and transhipped or re-exported with case-specific permission, Customs supervision, secure custody, inventory controls, testing and safeguards against home consumption or diversion. Multi-station transhipment requires prior nodal-officer consent and controlled movement. Custodians remain responsible for cargo security, handling, accounting and reporting irregularities. These measures operate until 31 October 2026.

Foreign Portfolio Investors may submit a Power of Attorney to custodians specifying their address through a digital signature compliant with the Information Technology Act, 2000. Such digitally executed Powers of Attorney are admissible as proof of address under the FPI KYC framework, replacing the requirement for notarisation, apostillisation or consularisation. The amendment to the FPI Master Circular takes effect on August 20, 2026, enabling faster digital onboarding of FPI applicants.

IFSCA-regulated entities may access the systems of SEBI-registered KYC Registration Agencies to undertake client KYC, enabling interoperability and information sharing. Entities accessing KRA systems become subject to the SEBI KRA Regulations and must comply with the applicable KYC norms prescribed in the securities-market Master Circular, as amended. Where clients are registered as Foreign Portfolio Investors, such entities must also comply with the prescribed data-security guidelines for FPIs, designated depository participants and eligible foreign investors. These requirements apply with immediate effect.

Retaliatory tariffs are set to escalate bilateral trade restrictions after the United States imposed tariffs of up to 50 per cent on specified Canadian imports. Canada proposes dollar-for-dollar countermeasures covering sectors including steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper and electronics. Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930 is invoked as the legal basis for the United States measures, permitting presidential import duties up to 50 per cent without a prior investigation or prescribed maximum duration. Escalation creates uncertainty for supply chains and renewal of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

Canada-United States trade relations are described as entering a confrontational phase after tariff negotiations collapsed. The United States imposed tariffs on specified Canadian goods, while Canada committed to reciprocal import taxes and suspended negotiations. The dispute marks a retreat from preferential market access and continental integration. Canada's export dependence on the United States may limit retaliation and increase risks to output, employment, investment and integrated supply chains. Trade diversification, non-United States investment and expanded Pacific export infrastructure are identified as responses to a potentially enduring protectionist bilateral relationship.

Retaliatory tariffs on United States goods will take effect from 8 September in response to United States tariffs on Canadian products and unsuccessful negotiations. The dollar-for-dollar measures will cover steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper, and electronics, with product-specific details to follow. Canada had been willing to remove certain retaliatory tariffs if corresponding United States tariffs were substantially reduced, but considered the final demands unacceptable.

Power tariff regulation in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh has been revised through approval of an average tariff increase, effective from 1 September 2026. Political representatives have opposed the increase on the ground that it adds to consumer hardship amid unemployment, inflation, and sectoral difficulties. The criticism also contrasts the revised tariff with prior commitments concerning free domestic electricity and gas.

Reported absence of an IAS officer was attributed to a family medical emergency and a pending leave request, rather than enforcement searches concerning an alleged recruitment-examination scam. The officer denied any connection with those searches and expressed willingness to face an inquiry. Enforcement searches at the Karnataka Public Service Commission concerned a money-laundering investigation into alleged recruitment irregularities. The State Cabinet decided to advise suspension of the commission chairperson and initiation of an inquiry after an earlier suspension was set aside for lacking the Cabinet's aid and advice.

Enforcement proceedings under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act concern allegations that suspended police officer Vijay Choudhary managed numerous assets through benami transactions and engaged in money laundering. An Anti-Corruption Bureau FIR had already been registered in relation to the allegations. Surinder Choudhary characterised the action as selective targeting but maintained that investigating agencies and the judiciary should address and decide matters concerning his family.

Specialised, timely and effective dispute-resolution mechanisms are necessary for technically complex disputes in telecom, broadcasting, airport tariffs and cyber sectors. Technology may assist legal reasoning but cannot replace judicial reasoning, requiring verification, professional responsibility and meaningful human oversight. Effective specialised adjudication should combine domain expertise with judicial discipline, respond to technical complexity, and protect natural justice, transparency and reasoned decision-making. Mediation and other consensual mechanisms can support dispute resolution.

Alleged misuse of Form 15CB certification has resulted in criminal proceedings concerning certificates issued for foreign remittances without verification of underlying documents. Form 15CB requires certification of applicable taxability and tax-deduction particulars for specified remittances to non-residents before processing by an authorised dealer. The allegations concern certificates that potentially enabled cross-border transfers through shell or non-existent companies, involving cheating, false certification, false evidence and common intention.

Beginner stock market investing requires a bank account, a trading or broking account with a SEBI-registered broker, and a Demat account for electronic holding of securities. Investments involve risk of loss and should align with financial goals, time horizon and loss-bearing capacity. Investors should understand primary and secondary markets, distinguish long-term investing from short-term trading, assess companies before purchase, diversify holdings, consider charges, maintain records and avoid borrowed-money investing, rumours and momentum-driven decisions.

Export transshipment of Bangladesh cargo to third countries through Nhava Sheva Port may occur by authorised road or rail routes in closed conveyances or containers. Shipping lines or authorised representatives must file a Bill of Transshipment, declare an Electronic Cargo Tracking System seal, and furnish a specific or general bond for twice the goods' value. At the Customs Freight Station, the Stuffing Superintendent verifies seal integrity, supervises direct transfer into the export container, seals it, and permits movement to the port under preventive escort. Electronic trip reports enable bond credit or cancellation and flag unauthorised unsealing.

Interest earned on fixed deposits created from earlier donor receipts forms income of the trust unless the donor specifically directs that the interest itself forms part of the corpus. Exemption for corpus contributions under Section 11(1)(d) requires an express donor direction covering the interest income, not merely the original donation. In the absence of such direction, interest on deposits is taxable trust income. Principles concerning unspent conditional grants or separately directed corpus funds do not apply where the interest lacks a specific corpus direction.

GST exemption covers transportation of patients in ambulances provided by Government or private service providers. Private service providers supplying ambulance transportation to State Governments under the National Health Mission undertake activities relating to health, sanitation and public health functions entrusted to local bodies. Services supplied to Government qualify for exemption as pure services where no goods are involved, or as composite supplies where the value of goods does not exceed 25 per cent of the total supply value.

Completed unsold flats held as stock-in-trade by a builder-developer were subject to tax on their annual value from assessment year 2018-19. The two-year moratorium under Section 23(5) did not apply because the projects had been completed before that year and the flats were opening and closing stock. Failure to apply the amended provision and assess deemed rental income rendered the assessment order erroneous and prejudicial to Revenue interests, supporting revision under Section 263.